The Astros catchers’ are both hitting terrible this season and the team can’t afford to go with these guys much longer. Rookie J.R. Towles was supposed to be the answer behind the plate for the Astros based on his strong showing last September. But, he has truly been awful with a bat in his hands. Towles has played in 39 games this season for the Astros and he is 16 for 109 (.147 avg, .567 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 4 homers and 13 RBIs. Veteran Brad Ausmas hasn’t played well enough to take the job away from Towles. Ausmas has played in 25 games for the Astros this season and he is 13 for 66 (.197 avg, .494 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer and 6 RBIs. The Astros should look to make a trade for a young catcher like Cleveland’s Kelly Shoppach or Seattle’s Jeff Clement.

The Astros have signed 31-year old righty Jorge Sosa to a minor league contract. Sosa has pitched in 20 games (0 starts) this season for the Mets and he was 4-1 with a 7.06 ERA and a 1.89 WHIP. Sosa has now pitched in 254 games (88 starts) in his major league career and he is 40-49 with 5 saves, a 4.67 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP. This was a nice low risk signing for the Astros as Sosa does have a good arm.

The Astros have designated Dave Borkowski for assignment and have activated Wandy Rodriguez from the D.L. Borkowski deserved to go based on his pitching this season. He has pitched in 18 games (0 starts) for the Astros this season and he is 0-2 with a 6.86 ERA and a 1.86 WHIP. Borkowski allowed 33 hits and 5 homers in only 21 innings this season for the Astros. Wandy Rodriguez has started 4 games for the Astros this season and he is 1-0 with a 2.31 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. The Astros will have open arms for Rodriguez as they need help in the starting rotation.

Veteran lefty Tim Byrdak is off to a good start of his Houston Astros’ career. He has pitched in 14 games for the Astros this season and he is 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. His only drawback so far this season is the fact that he has walked 8 batters in only 11.1 innings. Byrdak has appeared to find a home in Houston as the only lefty they had in the bullpen was Rule 5 pick Wesley Wright.

The Astros have placed righty reliever Geoff Geary on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right groin. Geary has pitched in 19 games this season for the Astros and he is 1-1 with a 1.47 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP. The Astros have recalled 25-year old righty Fernando Nieve to replace Geary in the bullpen. Nieve has pitched in 2 games so far for the Astros this season and he is 0-0 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.87 WHIP. In 9 games (7 starts) in AAA ball this season, Nieve was 1-3 with a 5.08 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. Nieve should do a decent job for the Astros but they will still miss Geary who has been great so far this season.

Lance Berkman is off to a simply amazing start to the month of May for the Houston Astros. He has played in 9 games this month and he is 22 for 35 (.629 avg, 1.826 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 4 homers, 11 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Berkman is one of the leaders for the MVP race this season in the National League with the numbers he’s putting up right now. He has played in 37 games this season for the Astros and he is 52 for 136 (.382 avg, 1.135 OPS) with 40 runs scored, 12 homers and 36 RBIs!

The Astros have traded 34-year old lefty reliever Stephen Randolph to the Phillies for a player to be named later. I don’t even know who the player will be but this is a good trade because no one wanted to see Randolph in a Astros’ uniform. After all, he has walked 136 batters in 155 career innings in the majors. Randolph pitched in 11 AAA games (0 starts) this season for the Phillies and he was 0-1 with 2 saves, a 1.23 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. But he has walked 11 batters in only 14.2 innings in AAA. He will not be missed.

23-year old righty starting pitcher Bud Norris is off to a good start in AA ball. He is the #5 rated prospect in the system of the Houston Astros according to Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook. Norris has started 6 games in AA this season and he is 3-0 with a 3.00 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. He also has whiffed 40 batters in only 30 innings this season which shows what kind of stuff he has. Norris could be on the fast track to the major leagues with the problems the Astros are having in the starting rotation.

Speedy center fielder Michael Bourn is as fast as hell but it won’t matter if he doesn’t start hitting the ball on the ground and take full advantage of his speed. Bourn has played in 28 games for the Astros so far this season and he is 21 for 104 (.202 avg, .605 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 3 homers, 5 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. Bourn better get his bat going because veteran Darin Erstad has been swinging a hot bat so far this year. Erstad has played in 28 games for the Astros this season and he is 14 for 46 (.304 avg, .700 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 4 RBIs and 1 stolen base. With the catchers on the Astros not hitting the ball they can’t afford to keep playing Bourn unless he earns his time by hitting the ball better.

The Astros need more offensive punch out of the catching position. Rookie J.R. Towles won the starting job out of spring training but he’s off to a very slow start with the bat. He has played in 25 games for the Astros this season and he is 12 for 68 (.176 avg, .706 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 4 homers and 10 RBIs. The Astros would be better served by Towles if he quit swinging for the fences so often and concentrated on hitting the ball hard up the middle. Veteran Brad Ausmus has never been much of an offensive threat and that’s the case this season also. Ausmus has played in 13 games this season for the Astros and he is 7 for 34 (.206 avg, .500 OPS) with 2 runs scored and 1 RBI. The Astros should have tried to find a way to keep Humberto Quintero around as he played in 1 game for the Astros and he was 2 for 4 with a double.